Stephen Decatur’s recent letter, arguing that the U.S. should not allow Syrian refugees into the country because they include many young Muslim men, is cowardly, ignorant and plain wrong on the facts.
Decatur argues that “almost all terrorist attacks in the U.S… have been perpetrated by Muslim young men.” In fact, according to the Feb. 26, 2013 issue of US News & World report, “of the more than 300 American deaths from political violence and mass shootings since 9/11, only 33 have come at the hands of Muslim-Americans.” In other words, 89 percent of terrorist killings were perpetrated by non-Muslims.
Terrorism is a real and scary problem, but it looms much larger in our imaginations than in reality. About 16,000 Americans are murdered annually. By terrorists? Just 18 in 2014. Statistically we should be almost 1,000 times more afraid of murder than of terrorism. And even more afraid of car crashes (which kill twice as many as homicides). But we aren’t. Why is that?
We aren’t rational. Humans mistrust difference. We are all tempted to blame and denigrate persons who speak, believe, love or experience life differently than ourselves. As a nation, we all too often indulge this dangerous xenophobic temptation. For example, witness slavery, Japanese-American internment during WWII and the denial of women’s suffrage until 1920. And yet, the U.S. aspires to be better and often succeeds. With protections like the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Bill of Rights and the equal protection under the law provided by the 14th Amendment, our nation has slowly made progress toward according all individuals the dignity they deserve. And as individuals, we must be vigilant and courageous in our use of reason and the defense of our rights in order to overcome the fears and prejudices that continually threaten to overwhelm the most vulnerable among us.
I love Redmond, and I am proud of our diverse, usually tolerant community that includes many dimensions of difference. There might be valid reasons to not accept refugees from Syria into the U.S., but Decatur’s fact-blind xenophobia is not among them. His letter does not belong in a reasonable debate about immigration policy. Decatur and the Redmond Reporter should do better.
Kirk McGettigan
Redmond
